Tell Nannan I Walked

The most important thing one must do to become a hero is to overcome a challenging obstacle. In Jefferson’s case, the obstacle was the fact that his state-appointed attorney had called him a hog and Jefferson had believed it. With the help of Grant and many others in his environment, he realized the truth- that only he could control whether he

would die a man or not. This was accomplished through much listening, thinking, and talking. Anyone would have been able to know that he had become a hero when he muttered the powerful words from the electric chair, “Tell Nannan I walked”(254).

Finally, the often forgotten integral step in securing one’s place as a hero. One must die with their beliefs; they must never become weak or afraid until the very end, no matter how late they become a hero. Jefferson did just this, as was evident near the very end of the book. Paul told Grant, “He was the strongest man in that crowded room, Grant Wiggins”(253). This made it obvious that Jefferson was not afraid of dying. But Jefferson proved to Grant the he really felt this way inside when he told him through his final diary entry, “tell them im strong tell them im a man”(234).

A prospective reader of A Lesson Before Dying

Some topics in this essay:
Tante Lou, Lesson Dying, Paul Bonin, Grant Wiggins”253, Unconsciously Jefferson, Grant Grant, Nannan Walked”, emma tante lou, miss emma tante, grant grant, Emma Tante, miss emma, lesson dying, tante lou, emma tante, , “tell nannan, Miss Emma,